


Much Ado About Nubbin

by Lannakitty



Category: Sanctuary (TV)
Genre: F/M, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-12-28
Updated: 2010-12-28
Packaged: 2017-10-14 04:14:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 16,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/145267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lannakitty/pseuds/Lannakitty
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nubbins made them do it. Season 3 AU.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Much Ado About Nubbin

**Author's Note:**

> Season 3, future AU! HUUUUGE thanks to kgaleway for some of the awesome Kate dialog and voice coaching, some fantastic ideas, feeding the plot bunnies and then being a Beta for this sucker. I'm pretty sure I've seen this title before, lol. But I'm using it anyway since it's a bit better than the working title.

"I'm beginning to wonder about you people."

Ashley snorted a laugh from her spot to Kate's right. "Yeah?" She didn't look up from the pad of paper in her lap.

"I'm stuck in a room with a tech-wizard werewolf, Buffy the vampire, sex-tribbles, and no way to escape," she summarized. Ashley smirked down at her drawing but didn't comment.

"Hey, I don't hear you helping," Henry retorted from across the room. He was elbow deep in the parts of the lab computers he'd finally given in and cannibalized. Kate thought he was hoping to short out the door or something. She’d zoned out for the technical details.

"I tried the air ducts. Who the hell puts heavy iron grating inside an air duct? Oh yeah. That was you."

Ashley snorted a laugh again. "I helped with that suggestion, actually."

Kate rolled her head to one side. "Yeah? Who were you expecting? John McClane?" The quip earned a small smirk.

"It's how the nubbins got around last time." Ashley scowled at the grate they'd managed to pry off in the hope they could move the heavier grating away. "Didn't think mom would spring for the better instillation."

"You're sure you can't teleport out?" Kate asked.

Blondie rolled her head to one side and gave Kate a flat look.

"Had to ask," Kate sighed.

She'd already taken as many naps as she could stand and while she had her iPod, just sitting and listening to music got a little old after awhile. A quick search somewhere around the tenth hour of captivity hadn't turned up anything fun like playing cards. She'd found an old Rolling Stone from the last time she'd been laid up and had re-read that while Ashley covered the whiteboard with doodles. Will had found something interesting to read and was content to do that in his corner, some kind of journal she thought. Henry growled and cursed at the computer and electrical systems by the door.

That had been yesterday.

The Sanctuary was still in lockdown and they'd only had intermittent communication with the outside world - one of the many joys of having a large base of operations that extended several floors _below_ ground. Sure, they had water, powerbars and even a (barely) closet-sized bathroom, but she was ready to leave now, thank you very much. Blondie had been chatting with Foss about something and Wolfboy had been upgrading one of the computers. Kate had only been there with Zimmerman to drop off a couple nubbins to use as test-cases. If they hadn’t lingered a few minutes to chat, she wouldn’t have been stuck with the rest.

The heavy security door that had trapped them inside bore several deep scratches and a rather large dent, but Ashley hadn't been able to do more than that. She couldn't teleport either, thanks to the ingenious upgrades to security they couldn’t disable. Henry was trying to fight his own system, but that was a one-werewolf war and there wasn't anything Kate could do to help. Which just left sitting around with practically nothing to do...and no relief.

Kate shifted in her seat. She'd heard about the nubbin incident, but hadn't really believed the Sanctuary kept a pile of what were essentially sex tribbles on hand. The yelling and pounding on the door that first hour had apparently scared the damn critters and Kate had caught herself checking out the goodies on her fellow captives. They'd literally retreated to their own corners of the room before some kind of orgy could start. Damn nubbins.

Kate glared the nubbins in their cage in the center of the room, then blinked. She counted and came up with...many more than had been there a few hours ago. "Shit."

"Hmm?" Ashley asked. She'd found some paper and pens and was sketching random things from life and memory. The sketch of Will was pretty good actually. The comic-book style doodles of Kate and Ashley rocking super-heroic poses and giant guns was totally badass (and Kate wanted it when they got the hell out of here).

"There are more of them." Kate jerked her chin at the cage in the center of the room.

"Shit," Ashley agreed, setting the paper and pens aside. "I thought Will said they were both male." She rose to her feet and began prowling around. "Help me find some containers. Let's separate them."

“How the hell can you tell the difference?” Kate asked. “I can’t even find their legs!” She sighed and got to her feet as well. She found a few screw-top plastic jars and poked some small holes into the tops. They would work for the little ones. Ashley found a plexi-glass box for the other adult. They set their cages down and faced the nubbins. As if sensing their conjugal time was up, the nubbins all vanished, camouflaging themselves.

"You grab, I'll cage?" Kate offered. "You heal faster than I would," she said when Ashley arched an eyebrow. Blondie shrugged and Kate opened the plexiglass.

"Need a hand?" Will offered, looking up from his journal.

"Nah. Think we got it," Kate told him.

"What are you doing?" Henry asked, looking up from the electronics.

"Stopping the pitter-patter of little nubbins," Ashley said as she grasped the top of the nubbin cage. "Ready? Set...Now!"

Ashley reached in and seized one of the larger nubbins. It squealed, screamed and wriggled in her grasp. She lifted it out and shoved it into the waiting container with one hand. She hissed, eyes flashing red and shook her hand inside the plexiglass. The nubbin dislodged and camouflaged itself. Kate shut the top and locked the lid in place.

“One down, a baker’s dozen to go.” Kate said.

“Let me help,” Will offered, standing up. He gave them both a winning smile.

“My hero,” Kate deadpanned.

Will shrugged a shoulder and grinned. He picked up a jar and went for one of the small ones and shoved it into its new container. While the nubbins bobbled and squealed and in the confusion, Kate and Ashley nabbed the other adult. They finally managed to have each nubbin in its own container.

“I thought they’d been tagged as guys,” Will apologized as he screwed the lid onto the last nubbin’s jar. It wiggled its ears at Zimmerman in an adorable way.

Ashley went over to one of the sinks and ran her hand under the water.

"You okay?" Will asked.

"It bit me," she grumped, reaching for the soap. “I’ll be fine in a day. Hey Kate, hand me some bandages, would you?"

"Sure." Kate unrolled a length of bandage, cut it and began to wrap Blondie's hand.

The skin on the back of her hand was soft in contrast with the slight calluses from her gun. While Ashley still healed quickly, it wasn't near instant as it had been. Kate gently wound the bandage around the slim wrist, feeling the wiry tendons under soft skin.

Ashley leaned over to see what she was doing and Kate got a whiff of the other woman's hair; floral and fruity with the undertone of leather from the coat she'd been wearing. Kate's fingers trailed down Ashley's wrist as she secured the bandage with a little bit of tape. She looked up and saw slightly parted lips and smoldering eyes.

The fiery orange was thrilling rather than frightening, and the heat present created a line of fire down her spine. Kate took a step and ended up sliding on one of Henry's tools. She staggered into Ashley, her body pressed against the other woman's, all soft curves and hard muscle. One of her hands ended up on the counter, the other on Ashley's shoulder. Ashley's hand was on her hip, keeping her from falling. Kate inhaled deeply, drawing in the scent of the other woman and feeling the slide of her body against Ashley's.

Kate leaned forward as Ashley did then they both blinked, freezing in place. Ashley's eyes shaded back to blue and she slipped away up even as Kate backed up, staggering around and away from Henry's tools and computer parts.

"Woah. Hey, now!" Kate exclaimed, retreating to her corner even as Ashley backed away, holding her hands up in a warding motion.

"Ah!"

The boys were utterly silent. Henry's eyes were huge and the tool he'd been holding slipped from his fingers and was lost in the computer casing. Will had picked up his journal again and was apparently deeply engrossed in his reading.

"Damn nubbins."

"Yeah, no shit," Ashley agreed. She was facing the wall, hands on her hips. Her breathing was a little off, but then so was Kate’s.

They were saved from an awkward conversation when lights suddenly dimmed then turned on again. Kate frowned at the lights. "What was that?"

"They're probably trying to reboot the system by cutting power," Henry surmised. He'd found a very tiny screw driver and was carefully taking apart something, and not looking at either Kate or Ashley.

Ashley rolled her eyes in general annoyance and stalked back to her spot on the floor, shedding her coat in a distracting way. Kate glared at the nubbins and reclaimed her spot on the floor as well. She pulled her iPod out. Kate had been keeping the volume low to preserve the battery and hadn't watched any of the videos she had, but it was still showing low power.

"Sorry," Ashley offered in a whisper.

Kate shrugged. Ashley smiled a little then bent over her pad of paper again, hair cascading down around her- Kate looked away and began to count the tiles on the ceiling. That was a little too boring so she closed her eyes and focused on the music. It wasn't easy since it was a little warm in the room and every so often, Ashley would shift position, loud enough to be heard over her low music.

The lights dimmed again and Kate looked around. Henry had ditched his outer shirt and was working in just the tight blue-grey t-shirt now. He looked at the door for a moment then sighed and went back to his work.

It was definitely hotter in the room than it had been. The nubbins were bobbling around in their enclosures, wiggling their ears at one another. A gentle touch drew Kate's attention. She paused the iPod and pulled the headphone from one ear.

"You have a hair thing?" Ashley asked.

"Lemme look," she said, digging around in her coat pockets. She found a packet of twizzlers and a couple jolly ranchers before finding another hair band. "Here."

"Thanks," Ashley said, taking the tie and quickly putting up her hair.

"Getting hot in here," Kate mused, arching an eyebrow.

Ashley's eyes twinkled as she winked. "A little." She sat back a little ways away, with her legs crossed, resting her elbows on her knees, scavenged art supplies in her lap.

Kate scooted over a bit. "You okay?"

Ashley rubbed her arms. "Yeah."

"You sure?"

She cleared her throat and hugged herself before looking at Kate. "You know that time when all you want is junk food and smut? This is like that, but worse."

"Yeah." Kate groaned in agreement and let her head hit the wall. “Man I could go for a burger and a chocolate shake.”

“Ohh, Chocolate,” Ashley sighed. “Wouldn’t mind a burger. Or beefcake.” She nodded subtly to the other side of the room.

Kate cackled, loud enough the guys looked over. Kate leered and both ducked back to what they were doing. Ashley fidgeted and shifted for several minutes before she set the pad and pens down and got to her feet. She began to do tai chi or something, her face very focused. Blondie wasn't built to sit around. Kate smirked and put the headphones back into her ears.

"I think I have it," Henry announced maybe twenty minutes after that. He wiped his brow with the back of his arm and carefully made a few last connections. He powered up the computer and everyone watched the door. There was a rumble and the sound of metal grinding against metal then a spark from the inside of the computer. A small trickle of smoke wafted up from the case.

Henry growled at the case and shoved it back. "Damn."

"Hey, it was a good try," Will offered.

"Yeah, you got further than I did," Ashley added from her corner.

Henry rose and winced, shaking out his legs. "Damn, I thought I had it." He growled and set his hands down on the center examination table. The nubbins reacted to the angry werewolf and hopped around their cages for a moment before camouflaging.

"Hey," Ashley put a hand on his shoulder. "You tried."

Henry growled again, which set off another flurry of invisible squeaking in the cages. "I should be able to do this."

"Henry, calm down," Ashley said. It was mostly gentle but there was an undercurrent of stress.

Henry's nostrils flared and he gave her a hooded look then bared his teeth slightly. Ashley tensed.

She held up a warning hand. "Stop freaking out the nubbins." Clearly it wasn’t just the nubbins who were freaking out.

Henry's lip twitched and he growled again, defiantly. Kate got to her feet. Will got up more slowly, carefully eyeing the exchange.

"Henry? You okay."

"Chill," Ashley told the werewolf. Her eyes had gone red and her hands were flexing.

"Or what?" Henry's eyes had gone gold and the nubbins were making shrill noises.

Kate met Will's eyes. He shrugged minutely. Kate could see he hoped they wouldn't have to try to get between the two if it came to blows. That would just about ruin her day. The nubbins hopped and one of the jars shook. It was then she noticed how...heady it was standing near them. There were pools of water in the bottoms of the containers. Will's eyes flicked down and she saw a look of concern. He licked his lips. Kate caught herself staring and backed several steps away.

Ashley rolled her shoulders. "Back off," she told Henry. Her voice sounded strained to Kate, but no way in hell was she pulling Blondie away. Even if she did look striking - damn.

Henry's eyes finally flicked to the cages and jars. He backed off, never taking his golden eyes off Ashley. Finally back in his corner, he shook himself all over and sat. Ashley withdrew to her corner as well. She sat on the ground then scooted back, huddling into herself.

Kate let out a sigh of relief, echoed by Will.

"Hey," he said. "We'll be out of here soon. Just focus on that." He nodded subtly at Ashley as he began edging over toward Henry.

She made a little "what?" gesture.

Will nodded again and Kate got the impression she should go over there. Next to the really hot and volatile vampire. Yeah, no. She shook her head. Will gave her a flat look and Kate rolled her eyes.

She dropped down on the ground a bit away from Ashley. "You okay?" she asked, keeping her voice low.

Ashley's eyes flicked up toward her then down again. She shook her head.

Kate scooted over closer. "What's up?"

Ashley cleared her throat and shifted a bit. "I feel like I'm going to crawl out of my skin. Just then I was about to-" She broke off and hugged her arms. "I don't want to hurt anyone," she added softly after a moment.

Kate felt her eyebrows shoot way up and she froze for a second before reaching out. "Hey. You okay?"

"I have all this...energy." Ashley pressed the heels of her hands against her eyes. "I need to let it out somehow. And if I don't control it, it's gonna come out and I think someone could get hurt. It wants..." Her voice ended on a slightly plaintive note.

Kate nodded slowly, trying to think. "Well," she drew out the word. "Bathroom’s the only privacy we’ve got right now." She shrugged one shoulder. "You could make matters into your own hands, so to speak?”

Ashley looked at her briefly. There was a slight pink tinge to her cheeks and her voice was just above a whisper. "Tried that. Made it worse."

"Damn." Kate had been tempted but hadn’t yet tried that herself.

"Yeah." Her eyes didn’t quite meet Kate’s. “Been awhile. Like...a really long time. Way before...” she trailed off and made a vague gesture that Kate took to mean the whole kidnapped-vamped-presumed-dead ordeal.

“Seriously?” That was something like maybe a year and a half, possibly more. That sucked.

Ashley nodded and bit her lip. "How about you?"

Kate eyed Blondie and her lips quirked into a small smile. "Not nearly the run you seem to be having." She shrugged. “Let’s just say no one’s seen my nifty new bullet scar.”

Ashley pulled a face and crossed her arms over her bent knees. "This sucks," she said, staring across the room.

"Yeah," Kate agreed, to all of it.

After a few minutes Ashley spoke again, keeping her voice down so the boys didn’t hear. “Uhm. When mom thought I was, you know,” she said in a very low voice.

“That you were dead?”

Ashley nodded. “Yeah. When she packed my stuff? She found my,” she paused, “personal toys. She threw them out. I haven’t replaced anything yet. Like I said, it’s been awhile.”

Kate blinked then began laughing. It wasn’t a giggle, really. “She saw your-?”

“Everything.” Ashley’s cheeks grew a shade darker. “She danced around it for about half an hour when she finally worked up the nerve to tell me. It’s a conversation I never want to repeat ever.”

Kate continued laughing, shaking her head. She reached over and put a hand on Ashley’s shoulder. “I am so sorry, but that’s kinda funny. And also very sad. You need to swipe a credit card and fix that.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “Maybe Wolfboy’s? For the laugh?”

Ashley laughed a little, but there wasn’t much feeling behind it. Her eyes slid across the room and focused on Foss. "Funny thing about being a crazy, teleporting Vampire. People don't really want to date those. Not that many people wanted to date Mom’s kid to begin with."

"I can get you a credit card," Kate offered. "They're easy."

Ashley's eyes slid her way then back across the room. "Thanks."

Kate followed her eyes. "Want me to steal you a guy?" she offered, only half joking. "It'll take a little longer and they tend to struggle, so...."

That earned a tiny almost-giggle from Ashley. Her eyes danced. "That's what the buckles and straps are for." She winked.

"Hmmm," Kate mused thoughtfully, eyeing the boys out of the corner of her eye. "Strapped down to the bed with black leather."

Ashley made a small hungry sound that made the base of Kate's spine tingle. "Ride 'em hard, put 'em away wet?" She arched a suggestive eyebrow. Her hands were flexing very slowly, but she was keeping the claws out of the picture for now.

God, Kate could almost smell the sweat, the leather, Will's aftershave. What the-? Well, it was nice. And spicy. And she noticed it. Geek boy didn't really wear much; hurt his nose or something probably. He didn't shave much either.

Ashley rolled her shoulders and shifted a bit in a way that brought up all kinds of jungle predator metaphors. It was suddenly very hot in here and Kate began to shrug out of her jacket. Since when did the slide of fabric on her skin feel so good?

Fucking. Nubbins.

Kate glared at the cages but caught movement on the far side. Will shifted in his seat as he watched them from over the top of his book. He licked his lips unconsciously. Kate felt an odd little thrill and found herself slowly taking the jacket off with as much twisting and sensuality as she thought she could credibly throw into the simple operation. She checked to see if she had his attention and oh, yeah. Totally hers.

Kate eyed him up and down. He wasn't bad to look at and she knew under the slightly baggy button-down were some decent muscles. And those lips...normally she wasn't a lip girl but Z-man...she wondered what those lips could do. She met his eyes and smiled, contemplating. His eyes got wider. She watched red creep up his neck and the book slide in front of his face. Kate smirked to herself.

The soft, slow, scraping sound to her right made her look over languidly. Ashley was dragging the tips of her nails against the floor; not long but dark and sharp. It was an oddly pensive motion, the flex of her hands and slightly sliding claws. The noise was a soft rasp, like a cat on a scratching post.

"How long have you wanted to jump him?" Kate asked in a low voice, nodding subtly at Foss, but keeping her eyes on Zimmerman.

Ashley's laugh was short and a little harsh.

"That long, huh?" Kate asked. "Why didn't you?"

"Lots of reasons," Ashley said, her voice a little strained. She shifted around, trying to get comfy. "Don't think he ever saw me like that. Plus he was hung up on that b-...researcher."

"Not a fan of his BFFs, then?"

Ashley growled, conveying anger, frustration, annoyance, pain and longing all in one sound. It was a very human noise. "She chose one." A single claw extended and bit into the flooring, making a neat furrow in the tile. "You get married that's it. You don't get it both ways. You pick, you commit. End of story."

"Plus, you were there and willing to make with the comforting," Kate mused. She thought she could understand Ash's position, though. Blondie took commitments seriously.

Ashley eyed her minutely. "I was a stupid kid." She began to rub her hands on her outer thighs. There was a line of sweat at her temple.

"You're not a kid now," Kate reminded her, leering just a little.

Ashley's reactions were kind-of fascinating. She supposed this was probably some bad "tiger by the tail" metaphor but Kate was enjoying it for now. Goading Ash probably wasn't a smart idea, but she couldn't help herself. The focus wasn't directly on her but damn if the show wasn't nice. She wondered how Foss would react if he found out Blondie had the hots for him. He'd probably get flustered. He got flustered by pretty women too easily, Kate thought. Made it easy to steal his credit card and equipment though.

Ashley gritted her teeth in something resembling pain and shifted position again.

"Hey, you okay?" Kate asked, reaching over.

Ashley jerked her shoulder away from Kate's fingers. "No offense, but don't touch me right now. I feel like I'm going to explode."

Kate blinked and thought for a moment. There was a bathroom, if however small. And what happened in the infirmary of sexy doom could stay in the infirmary of sexy doom. "Normally," she drawled, "I need a couple shots of tequila before offering, but can I help?" She made some vague hand gestures to get the point across.

Ashley paused, her body going still for a heavy moment. Only her eyes moved, raking her up and down. Kate squirmed a little under the intense scrutiny. The first delicious tingles of anticipation began to settle in. Damn, was it hotter in here?

"Thanks," Ashley finally said. She focused on the other side of the room. "I think I've got it." She stood.

Kate felt slightly disappointed, but also a little intrigued. “You gonna ask him to rig up a vibe?" she asked, again only half joking.

Ashley flashed her a brilliant smile but shook her head slightly. She turned away, squaring her shoulders a bit and marched over to Will. “We’re trading corners,” she said, reaching out and grabbing his chair. She wheeled him over to the other side of the room and parked him close to where she’d been sitting.

Will blinked at the sudden change and watched her go. He looked at Kate, frowning slightly. “Hi?”

“Hey,” Kate grinned.

Will gulped then looked back at Ashley, who was digging around in one of the storage cabinets, then back at Kate. “What’s going on?”

Kate smirked, “Well we’re stuck in a locked down room with the bare essentials and a bunch of sex-tribbles.”

Will gave her a flat look “Not what I meant.”

Kate shrugged. She paused then added, “She wasn’t doing well just now.”

Ashley suddenly dropped half the extra blankets on the ground near Kate’s part of the room. She then went back to her newly claimed corner of the room and yanked the mattresses off the beds on that side. They joined the other half of the blankets. She draped one of the bedsheets over the side of a bed, blocking the little nest she was making from view.

Kate saw where this was going.

“Uhm-”

And apparently so did Will.

He rose from his chair, dropping the journal onto the seat. “Hey, Ash?”

Henry had been lying on the floor in his corner, hands folded on his stomach, eyes closed. He opened them and looked over when Will spoke up. Ashley closed the cabinet she’d been rummaging through and stripped off her top, revealing a rather cute black bra. Henry sat up, frowning at her back.

Ashley eyed Will for a moment then grabbed one of the boxes she’d set on the stripped down infirmary bed. She stalked over toward Kate, all dangerous hips and serious intent. She pressed the box into Kate’s hands.

“In case you can’t deal anymore,” she said quietly. Ashley leaned in closer and whispered, “I’ll try to be quiet.”

Kate read the contents of the box, condoms, and reached for Ashley's shoulder as she turned away. Her skin was fever hot. "Hey. Is this really a good idea?"

Ashley gave her a teeny shrug and a small smile. "Maybe not. But I'm going to do it anyway." She turned away, stalking across the room.

Henry got to his feet, face going a bit slack in shock as Ashley slunk his way, hips swaying. He actually backed up half a step into the counter and gulped. He was startled and maybe a bit concerned, but interested too.

"Is she-?" Will asked.

"Yeah."

"What did you say to her?"

Kate's head whipped around. "Me? How the hell is any of this my fault?" Kate hissed. She crossed her arms and gave him a look. She remembered she had the box of condoms and tossed them onto the pile of extra blankets that Ashley had left in case...Not thinking about that. Will was asking her something. "What?"

"What did she say?"

"She was just about ready to crawl out of her skin," Kate said, omitting the rest. Will had probably already pegged Blondie's crush on the werewolf anyway.

She looked up. There was talking going on across the room. Talking and smiling; small smiles, the borderline sappy ones that were really honest, like the kissing was. Talking, smiling and kissing and- Kate turned around before it could get more graphic than mutual fondling. She snagged Ashley's pad of doodles and sat, stealing Will's chair. He was probably giving her a dirty look, but she ignored him.

Will sat on the ground, his back to the couple on the other side of the room. He opened the journal, found his place and began to read, studiously ignoring everyone else, including Kate.

Kate stuck her tongue out at him then opened the pad of paper. The doodle of her and Ashley she wanted, but she didn't want to rip it out since she didn't have a good place to stash it. Also, Blondie had claws and Kate didn't know if she was one of those crazy-possessive artists. There were some tiny cartoon versions of various abnormals including an absofrigginlutely adorable one of Ralphie that Kate was also going to insist on getting when this was over. There was a comic panel of Tesla punching out the emo vampire from those movies. The Count from Sesame street uppercut the same actor on the next panel. Blondie's sense of humor was twisted and Kate approved.

There was a life study of Will reading a journal, and a close up of his face on the same page. Kate's lips quirked at that. Ash had Z-man's lips down and the little curl of his hair. The next page had similar drawings of Henry working on the computer with an additional study of hands. The next page was Will and Henry in a more cartoony/comic style and some random stick figure pornography. Kate smirked at that and turned the page. A portrait of Magnus graced the next sheet of lined paper, done in black except for where Blondie had colored her eyes in with a blue pen. It was a really good portrait, Kate thought. Following Magnus, was a very haunted sketch of Druitt. It shared a page with a study of the man's eyes and a comic-y version of her parents in a standoff, guns vs knives. Then there was another study of Henry's profile.

Kate paused her perusal when there was a low, throaty laugh and the sound of a belt buckle and pants hitting the floor.

She flipped to the next page. The figures weren't identifiable, but they were sensually intertwined. Kate quickly flipped to the next page and found more of the same with chaotic images colored with pen and the white-board markers in striking red. Flipping again she found more studies of Henry's shoulders and arms, thumbnails of sensuality and deep emotion. The descent into smutty and intense imagery kept going the further Kate got into the sketch pad.

Kate put the sketch pad aside. Not helping. Kate folded her hands in her lap and thought furiously of something to do that would block out these feelings she was having and couldn't act on. Ashley moaned softly and Kate heard another set of pants hit the floor. Fuck.

Will looked up at her. Clearing his throat he asked, "They're really gonna- Right here?"

"Yeah." Kate bit her lower lip and resisted the urge to turn around. It was hard, especially when Foss growled so deep it made her body tingle.

Will didn't, but quickly turned around, cheeks heating. "They do remember we're here, right?"

"Dunno about wolfboy, but I don't think Ash cares at this point." She looked around for some kind of escape, but of course there wasn't any of they would have been long gone by now. There was only this room and then the...the attached bathroom. Sure it was barely large enough for one person, but she wouldn't have to hear Blondie and wolfboy get it on.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Will looking in the same direction. Ashley laughed again and Kate sprinted for the door at the same time Will did.

"It's mine!" Kate hissed. "I got here first."

Will grabbed Kate's shoulders and looked her in the eye. "I cannot listen to two of my friends-" He paused, looking for the word.

"Knocking boots?"

Will gave her a flat look but whatever he was going to say was cut off by Ashley giggling. _Giggling_. Both went for the door, shoving and pushing.

"No! I thought of it first!" Kate insisted. "Be a gentleman!"

"I'm going to have to sit across from one or both of them in a professional capacity. I can't stay here!"

"That's not a good excuse!" Kate hissed, sliding under Will's arm and darting into the bathroom. Unfortunately Will came in before she could close the door. Kate lost her balance and ended up falling backwards onto the closed toilet seat, pulling Will down as she went. Unbalanced, Will threw his arms out and caught the wall behind her to keep from falling onto her.

"Well, isn't this cozy," Kate quipped. She crossed her arms and glared at Will. "You can leave. Any time now."

Will shifted around, trying to find a way to stand in the small room. Kate shifted her legs and knees, trying to give him room though she didn't really want to. If she were alone...Yeah not the best thing to think about when that deliciously spicy aftershave was inches away.

Will stumbled and fell forward with a small yipe. Kate reached out to keep from being squashed. "Hey!"

"Sorry," he apologized, face inches from her own.

The chest wasn't bad, she decided. "You can move now," she said tersely. All she could smell was his aftershave.

"So can you," Will said after a moment. His breathing was a little unsteady.

"What?"

"You can move your hands."

Kate looked down at her hands. She was sure she'd told them to move. She looked back at Will. "You fell on me," she complained. Not the best comeback in the world but everything was just a bit hazy. She wondered how often he worked out. He wasn't chiseled but the muscles under her fingers were delightfully hard and... Kate shoved him back a little and recrossed her arms over her chest. She didn't look at him. She focused on a little spot on the wall.

"Sorry," he said belatedly. "So, uh, how about that...local sports team?"

Kate snorted, the corners of her mouth twitching despite her best efforts. "Yeah I heard they had a thing," she retorted, teasing. The air was very close in here. He was near enough she could feel the heat radiating off his body.

"Yeah, they totally scored."

There was an awkward pause. Kate could almost feel the tension in Will's body as he realized what he'd said and wondered if she'd take it the wrong way. Kate burst out laughing.

"Oh come on," Will groused. "What are you, twelve?"

For some reason that just made Kate laugh harder. She leaned back and her shoulder hit the flushing lever. She froze as Will began laughing. Kate made a disgusted sound.

"Hey, at least if we keep flushing we won't hear anything."

Kate rolled her eyes. She hadn't heard anything since coming in here. It had really seemed like a good idea but now not so much.

"It's stupid. Blondie should have dragged Foss in here."

Will grunted agreement. After a minute he said reflectively, "Actually, I'm kinda surprised."

Kate eyed him. "By what?"

"That she finally acted."

“Blondie isn’t exactly hesitant.”

Will smiled a little. It was cute. Kate refocused on the wall.

“When it isn’t about her, no. She’ll run into a fire if it means she’s helping or protecting, but she’s not quick to let people in close to her personally.”

“Nothing wrong with that,” Kate retorted. “People can really suck.”

“Sometimes,” Will allowed, slowly. “But it’s a lonely way to live.”

“Maybe she didn’t want a controlling, nagging boyfriend holding her back.”

“Well how do you-”

“And then there’s the whole superman thing. Who wants to have a weakness some Lex Luthor can exploit.” Kate made face. “Bad metaphor but you know what I mean.”

Will shifted his weight around and Kate focused on the wall. She could feel his eyes on her and she sure as hell wasn’t gonna look up at him. Will knew too much sometimes.

“I think of it more like someone who’s got my back,” he said quietly, seriously, in that gentle, reasonable, Will-the-shrink-voice he used when calming someone down. It was painfully honest. “It’s not a weakness if you make it a strength.”

Kate wasn’t sure they were talking about Ashley anymore. She didn’t like it.

“You know,” she said, changing the topic,”I thought for a moment Foss wasn't going to play ball." She shifted on her seat. If Henry hadn't, it was entirely likely Ashley would have taken Kate up on her earlier offer and... Kate rolled her shoulders. It was too hot in here.

"Is it hot in here?" Will asked. He was pulling at the collar of his shirt.

"A bit," Kate said. She tugged at the collar of her shirt and loosened the tie of her jacket on her hips. She caught Will looking and leered.

Will rolled his eyes and began undoing the buttons on his sleeves and rolling them up to his elbows.

There was a moan from the other side of the door. Kate and Will both rushed to flush the handle again. Will was unbalanced again and managed to just catch himself on the walls.

"Watch it!" Kate groused, looking up at him.

Will looked down, face once again inches away. "Sorry."

"Yeah. Well," Kate trailed off, looking away. Will stayed there for a moment, tongue running over his lips then stood up. Kate swallowed and bit her lower lip. The rustle of fabric got her attention.

"What do you think you're doing?"

The look Will gave her was excitingly devious. "It's hot in here," he said, continuing to strip off the outer shirt. With the sleeves rolled up it didn't work so well, so he began to roll them down so he could take it off. His hips were more or less at eye level as he wiggled, trying not fall as he took off the shirt.

Kate grinned and dug into her pants pocket, suddenly inspired. Will got the shirt off and absolutely froze when he felt her hands under his belt.

"What are you doing?"

Kate stopped looking at the thin line of flesh she'd exposed and gave him one of her best smirks. "Sorry bud," she said, giving his thigh a swat that made him yelp in surprise. "All I have are ones."

Will looked down at the wrinkled one-dollar bill stuffed into his waistband and arched an eyebrow. Will stuffed the bill into a pocket and tied the shirt around his waist. He crossed his arms and leaned against the door

Kate looked up at him and shrugged, she sat back, playing it cool. Blood was rushing in her ears. That had been a stupid, stupid thing to do. Funny, but stupid. Kate tapped her fingers against one arm. Realizing what she was doing she made an effort to still them. Will filled the jeans he was wearing well and she still had an eyeful of his crotch. The zipper glinted in the hard light of the bathroom. She had the sudden idea of reaching out and tugging it down, maybe with her teeth- Kate balled her hand into a fist and stared at a spot on the door.

There was another groan and they both raced for the handle on the toilet again. Kate slapped Will's hand away and pushed the lever. Will stood back, lost his balance and slammed into the door again. There was a creak and a crack and Will's eyes became comically huge before the door gave way behind him and he fell onto the floor.

Kate stood up in surprise.

Will groaned and rubbed his rear. "Ow."

Kate grinned and closed the door, victorious.

The door, swung open. And again when she tried to close it a second time. She tried to wedge it closed, but it swung open. Sighing, Kate sat on the closed toilet and pushed the door open with one finger. She glared at Zimmerman who was now sitting on the floor.

"Look what you did!"

Will held up a finger as he got to his feet. "What I did?"

"Yeah. Way to go!" She stood up.

Will's scowl turned devious just a moment before he snagged the chair and sat in it. He rolled over and picked up his journal. Giving her a mild look, he opened to the page he'd been on and began reading.

Kate rolled her eyes and stalked out of the bathroom. She sat on the floor and leaned against the wall. Remembering her iPod, Kate smiled as she pulled the device out and slipped the earphones in. She could feel Will's eyes on her and smiled. She turned the volume up a little and looked away from Will.

Ash had largely kept her promise to keep it down, but Foss was...enthusiastic. Curiosity got the better of her and Kate looked at the far side of the room. The draped blanket was thin and there was light on the far side. The silhouettes moving on the blanket were oddly captivating; sensuously moving together rather than the hard jarring slap of flesh of flesh in pornography. Kate watched only long enough to recognize Blondie was on top, riding Foss's lap, before she looked away, cheeks heating.

Kate looked up at the center table to glare at the nubbins. They were apparently getting a show from their vantage point. She scowled at them. Her initial idea had been to kill them, but no, that's now how things were done here. Kate rolled her eyes, propped her chin in her hand and dialed up the music.

Will shifted in his chair. She watched as he tried to hide behind his journal. Finally he grimaced. He eyed her then climbed down to sit next to her. "Hey. Mind sharing the music?"

Kate gave him a look and pulled out one earbud. "You're volunteering to listen to my music."

Will nodded. "Better that than," he gestured vaguely to the far side of the room.

They'd switched positions and Kate could see some of Ashley's hair spilling out beyond the edge of the draped blanket. "If I share then I'll hear it too."

"Please," he pleaded, somehow making his eyes huge. Damn.

"Oh, you are not pulling the puppy eyes on me," she growled.

"Please?"

His lip trembled for a moment before there was a rather soft, high noise from Ashley. Will winced. "Really. Please. I'll do anything."

"Anything?" Kate asked.

"Not illegal."

Kate grinned slowly. "You said anything," she drawled as she held out the right headphone. Will sighed and took it.

Sharing the headphones meant they had to sit very closely. He was warm and solid against her shoulder, where he couldn’t quite keep from touching her. It had been a disappointingly long time since she’d been in bed with a guy and every time he bumped against her, she was reminded of that fact.

Kate stuck a finger in her other ear and did not look at the other side of the room. Ok, so there was another glance, but the motions going on had been too...too much for her. Erotic in the very best ways and reminding her of how she was currently not getting laid. Kate’s traitorous eyes drifted over to the box of condoms and pile of makeshift bedding. She closed them and focused on the music.

“The hell is this?”

“What?”

Will pointed at his headphone. “This? Is this even music?”

“Experimental acid grunge metal!”

Will blinked at her slowly then a second time. “Now you’re just stringing words together.”

“Am not!”

“There is no way that is a genre!”

“I’m sorry my awesome music isn’t good enough for you. God, what do you listen to? Oh right. Coldplay.”

“Why do you keep bringing that up?”

“Like Clocks or Viva le vida loca is going to block out the rutting werewolf,”

Will winced. “Image I did not need.”

“God, what do you want? Fallout boy? If you tell me Panic! At the Disco I might have to beat you.”

“No, no.” Will held up a hand. “This is fine.”

Kate rolled her eyes, stuffed her finger back into her ear and closed her eyes. Will perched beside her like some sort of disgruntled bird, but beggars couldn’t be choosers, damnit. Even if they smelled nice.

She dove into her directory looking for something slightly more mainstream. Clearly Will wasn’t ready for the advanced class, but she could maybe give him beginners lessons in indie music. “Here. Try this,” she said, switching to another album.

“You don’t have to do that.”

“Quit complaining.”

He did, frowning as the first track began. “I like this,” he decided after a bit.

“Well, Hallelujah, there’s hope for the boy!”

Will rolled his eyes at her. “What is this?”

“Florence and the Machine,” she said, tilting her iPod’s screen so he could read it.

“Huh,” he settled down, actually enjoying the music for once and Kate felt a small smile creep up. The first hit was always free.

The ipod’s charge died a quiet, sudden death.

“Uhm.”

“Fuck.”

“Did it die?”

“Charge ran out,” Kate sighed. “Gimmie my earphone back. At least I can muffle the sound.”

“That’s a good idea.”

“No kidding. Gimmie.”

“No, earplugs.”

Kate looked at him. “Earplugs. As in noise blocking, we could really use these right now, earplugs.”

“Yes.”

“In here?”

“I think so.”

There was a breathy little moan from the other side of the room, a low chuckle and then loud kissing sounds. At least Kate chose to believe they were kissing sounds. It was arousing as hell despite the situation and Kate did not want to hear any of it.

“Where?” Kate hissed.

Will’s lips thinned as he pointed to a cabinet across the room.

“Fuck.”

“Agreed.”

Kate looked at the cupboard then at Will. “Rock, Paper, scissors?”

Will got to a crouch. “No. I’ll just....go.”

“My hero.”

Will flashed her a smile then looked at his target. And then stayed there, fingers drumming on his knee.

“Any time,” Kate whispered.

“I’m going. I’m going.” He bounced on the balls of his feet then shot across the room. He hip-checked one of the tables because he was not looking where he was going but made it over there. He ripped open one of the doors and began digging through the contents. Bandages and gauze fell out onto the counter and floor. Boxes fell with a loud clatter and one spilled cotton swabs all over the ground.

Finally Will found what he was looking for. He dashed across the room, sliding the last few feet. Will tore open the box’s lid.

“The hell was that?”

“Nothing! Nothing! Go back to...Whatever.”

“Dude,” Kate said, reaching for some earplugs, “He’s so not even listening.” Given he was probably buri- Kate stopped that through cold. No. She would not think about the people she worked with getting it on. It was like imagining her brother and- Ew. She made a face and stuffed the earplugs in.

Blessed, blissful, almost silence. Kate sighed and leaned against the wall.

“Best idea ever!”

“What?”

Kate smiled and gave him a thumbs up. Will shrugged a shoulder, gave her another one of those sexy-nerdy-boy grins, and picked up the journal. He sat beside her with his back against the wall.

With the earplugs, the situation was more tolerable. Boring, but she could deal with that. She looked over Will’s shoulder at the journal. She got maybe a paragraph in before she felt her brain seizing up and her eyes cross. The article had something to do with the anatomy of some kind of underwater...something. Maybe a fish. Maybe a fish man? It was short on summaries and long on excessively complicated words. It was also more biology than sociology. Customs Kate could dig. You knew how someone operated, you knew how to deal with them. Biology was so much noise.

Will grinned up at her and offered part of the book. He looked a little eager to share and Kate realized that he actually found the book interesting. She eyed the book eyed him and shook her head, the look she gave him clearly saying “yeah, right.” Will shrugged in a “Your loss” kinda way.

Kate fished around in her pockets and found the Twizzlers and jolly ranchers. Since he’d grabbed the earplugs, she offered the watermelon candy to Will, nudging him with her elbow. Will smiled and ate the candy. Kate opened the package of Twizzlers. Sucking on the end of one, she grabbed her Rolling Stone again. Apparently there was a level of bored at which she would read the interview with Justin Beiber, who knew? She shuddered and flipped to the first page, drawing out the red string and letting it slide along her tongue before sucking it back in again. She only had a few of these, so she figured she might as well make them last.

She was on the second question in the interview when she realized she was being watched. Kate looked up, long end of the twizzler dangling from her mouth, just in time to see Will avert his eyes. Kate pulled the candy out, licked her lips then very slowly sucked on it. She pretended to read the Rolling Stone but out of the corner of her eye she saw she had a captive audience. Way more fun than reading about the newest tween heart-throb.

She flipped the page and pulled suggestively on the candy rope before sucking it back in. The third time she did that, Will shifted in his seat, leaning a bit closer. She graciously tilted the magazine so he could read, innocently continuing to do dirty things to the candy. Flipping the page she began to suck on the candy at varying speeds, intentionally using more tongue than was strictly necessary. Will made some sound or other. She couldn’t hear it but she realized he was close enough she could feel the rumble in his chest. Finally looking up, she found herself under a surprising, intense scrutiny. He hadn’t really ever studied her that way before.

When she’d first moved in, he’d watched her like, well, like some kind of cop, or a security officer. Or maybe like that vice principal she’d had for a couple years who’d never let her get away with anything; she always seemed to catch Kate at just the right moment when no-one else could. Kate had shaped up for a bit out of respect more than a disliking for detention. Will had expected trouble and was always on the alert, learning her moves, profiling her. Granted, at the time Kate hadn’t known how or when she’d split, and with what goodies.

Eventually he looked at her the way he looked at everyone else; trying to see where the frayed edges were and what had caused them. Any he found he tried to patch back up. Kate had been slightly suspicious when she realized he let her pick the music sometimes and when she found cherry slushies at her elbow with a friendly smile. She was slightly angry when she realized she’d usually chat for a bit, and more when she realized how candid she could be at those times. It was like he got under her guard with his dorky smile and high-fructose bribes. Eventually she realized It was just how he worked. Rather than haul people onto a couch, he brought some form of stress relief and an ear to bend if needed.

This wasn’t the same look at all.

Will studied her with a focused intensity. It could have been the nubbins, or the air around him really could have been charged; in this place it was hard to say. Either way, Kate realized she’d never had all of Will Zimmerman’s considerable attention focused solely on her. He’d split it before - on other people, other considerations, other worries and concerns. His eyes studied only her and it was...heady and strange. Exhilarating. She felt she’d been caught by him, but at the same time, she’d captured him as well.

He reached forward deliberately, giving her ample time to run and part of her wanted to flee. The greater part was excited and curious to see what happened next. Will’s eyes flickered over her face as he leaned in, studying every nuance, before he finally met her eyes. Kate’s blood pounded in her ears, the only sound she could really hear. She could smell his aftershave, the faint smell of the candy on his breath, the scent of his skin. The hand on her cheek was warm when he finally touched her, sending a shiver down her spine and a spreading tingle outward. Distantly she realized she’d tugged the twizzler out of her mouth. It left with a small, wet pop. His eyes flickered to her lips, nostrils flaring. The world seemed to slow down as he leaned toward her. He tasted like watermelon candy.

Why had she ever thought this might be a bad idea?

The planes of his chest were warm and hard under her fingers as she crawled into his lap. His hands explored her back, firm fingers gently massaging away knots of tension as he worked down her spine. They seemed to delight when he found the edge of skin between her shirt and pants, dancing lightly along. Will pushed the jacket wrapped around her waist aside and Kate shuddered, the slide of fabric and skin a rough contrast to the softness of his lips.

He moaned, a silent rumble as his hands drew up her sides. His tongue warred with hers as he sought to explore every inch of her. They parted, gasping for air, and Kate sighed as he began to kiss, lick and nip his way up her neck. He was, unsurprisingly, a very fast learner and an enthusiastic explorer. She couldn’t stop the soft little moan that escaped when he discovered that spot behind her ear. Kate shifted lower in his lap, pressing against him and grazing her lips ever so gently over the rough stubble of his cheek. She nipped at his ear as the meandering fingers found their way under her top.

Will spread his fingers over her back, pressing gently, pulling her closer. Kate found his lips again, intoxicated by the smell and scent of him. He lay her back onto some blankets, and a distant part of Kate’s mind remembered they’d been dropped there some time ago and why. They felt amazing under the small patches of exposed skin. Will placed a series of feather light kisses over her face and sat back. Kate opened her eyes languidly. Will tugged the earplugs from his ears then gently removed them from Kate as well. Sound returned, the white noise buzz and hum of the infirmary equipment suddenly loud. Will untied the jacket from around her waist and flicked open the buttons at the top of her pants with a goofy grin. He leaned down again and suddenly the only thing Kate could hear once more was the beating of her own heart as they kissed.

Sighing as his nimble fingers stroked up her side, sending trails of fire over her skin, Kate dimly became aware of a rhythmic tapping. Will kissed her deeply again, moaning against her mouth as she gently scraped her nails across his scalp. The tapping grew louder and Will broke off the kiss with a confused frown.

Pouting, Kate dragged him back down when there was a loud clank that shook the floor and rattled the glassware. They broke apart, looking for the source of the sound, then over at the heavy security door. Will sat back, rubbing the back of his head, panting. Kate rolled to her knees, breathing heavily as well. Reality began to fall on her like a cold wave. Her heart launched itself into her throat and the sound of rushing blood was like a tidal wave in her head.

The door vibrated then was wrenched upwards. It stuck at the dented section Blondie had managed, but remained open. Hairy arms held it while a slender set of hands propped it up on a jack. Cool air rushed into the room, reminding Kate how stale and hot it had become in there. It cleared away some of the fog in her mind.

Kate bolted.

She got the vague impression of Magnus and Bigfoot as she sprinted past them. As she ran, the cool air and adrenaline focused her mind on what had almost happened. She dodged past a rather surprised looking Tesla and nearly bowled over Steve before finally making it to her room. Kate shut the door and locked it behind her. Stripping as she walked, she left the clothes where they fell. She was going to take the coldest shower ever.

* * *

  
The water was painfully cold when she turned it on, shocking more sense into her fuzzy brain. Perfect. Kate leaned against the wall and let the water sluice down her back. The water weighed down her hair and it slid over her shoulders in heavy locks. She leaned to one side and realized she hadn’t taken off the heavy hoops. With a small whine she stood up under the spray, took off the earrings, linked them together and tossed them blindly in the direction of the counter.

Kate reached out and turned the heat up a bit. There was cold and there was uncomfy. The initial shock had been bracing but now it was just this side of miserable. The water warmed and Kate washed her hair, focusing on that. They hadn’t been stuck for so long she reeked, but it had become warm in there, particularly toward the end.

Kate shoved the memory away. Those critters were a menace, even if Magnus and Sparkula found them useful in testing whatever it was that Victorian Mad Scientists tested. The whole situation was stupid. She slammed the bottle of shampoo down with a little more force than strictly necessary. Stupid sex tribble hormones had thrown her for a loop; had thrown everyone off balance. She attacked her hair with clawed fingers, working the product into a lather. At least she hadn’t had any witnesses. Aside from Will... Who’d also been compromised. Really.

She stepped under the lukewarm spray and let it wash the suds away, down her back and chest. She closed her eyes and worked fingers through her hair. The suds ran down her body in soapy sheets of water. Kate remembered the feeling of Will’s hand trailing down her side, just brushing against her breasts. The gentle but firm touch as he explored. Her hand slid over soapy skin and-

Kate’s eyes flew open. She wouldn’t think about any of that! She wouldn’t! She hadn’t been her self. She had soap in her eyes.

“Ack!”

She turned and faced the water, wiping the suds from her eyes and hair. Cold showers were supposed to _help_. She quickly ran some conditioner through her hair and rinsed that out. She turned off the shower and toweled dry before slipping into a bathrobe while she tackled her hair. The terrycloth across her breasts was delightful and she gripped the handle of her brush tighter.

Stupid nubbins.

She dried her hair, combed it, then went digging in her clean clothes pile. Dressed, she looked around her room then eyed the door. She didn’t really want to go out there just yet. Magnus would make her file some kind of report and, just, no. What happened there stayed there. Like Vegas, but less fun.

She wondered what a trip to Vegas with this crew would be like for a brief moment. Hank would probably be an expert card counter. Will would clean up at poker most likely. He could read practically anyone’s tells, so scoring a big pot would be easy...provided he could keep up a poker face. She was fairly good at that, if she did say so herself. She could give him pointers, like not pouting so slightly when he didn’t agree with how things were working out, or telling him not to grin like a goofball when he was happy. He could turn the charm on the little old ladies at the table with that honest, open smile, and-

Kate sighed. At the time, she’d thought the kissing had been good. It probably hadn’t been that great, actually. She bet it was because of the nubbins. It had to have been. And she hadn’t had any action in awhile so there was that. But really those weren’t good reasons to dwell on Z-Man’s lips. Or his fingers. Or-

Kate needed something to do that wasn’t thinking about- She bit her lip and stared hard at the pile of clean clothing in the laundry hamper. Laundry. She would put away her laundry. It would occupy her mind so she couldn’t think about the stupid and extremely embarrassing situation from earlier. Really.

Kate picked up the top shirt and quickly folded it and stuffed it into her drawers then moved on to the next. She found the ball of panties and began to untangle and stack them. Grinning at the red ones she remembered the look on Will’s face when he’d found them. It was probably a good thing he hadn’t got into her pants earlier. Well, further into her pants. The green ones she’d been wearing weren’t as cute. The black pair she had on now were fairly cute and they matched the lacy bra. She wond-

“Okay,” Kate growled at her laundry. “This isn’t working. And I’m talking to my thongs.”

She dumped the rest of the unfolded laundry into her drawers and confronted the door. Maybe she could sneak down to Ralphie’s enclosure. The steno could probably use a walk, and the critter would keep her mind busy.

She carefully made her way down the hall to the elevator and rode it the few floors to the steno's enclosure. She grabbed his leash from the hook on the wall. Opening the door she wasn't surprised to see the steno wiggling in delight on the other side. She smiled. Somehow he always seemed to know.

"Hey baby!" she snapped the collar and leash around his neck. "Wanna go for a walk?"

“Walk” was one of Ralphie’s favorite words. He liked “walk” almost as much as he liked “Ride”. Ride usually meant she was sneaking him out for a two am milkshake and burgers run. He tugged on the lead and led the way towards the inner courtyard, long feet plodding along and his stubby tail wiggling his rear as he sniffed this or that.

The early evening air was cool and Kate realized she didn’t know where her jacket was. With a sickening feeling she realized she’d probably left it in the infirmary. Well, maybe it was clear now. And if she had the steno with her, she had an excuse to leave if she needed.

Ralphie bumped against her leg, a chewed frisbee he’d found held in his teeth. She’s get to the coat in a bit, she decided. She unhooked the lead and tossed the toy a few times and played tug with the steno.

Ralphie dropped the frisbee and looked toward the gardens and the kitchen door, tilting his head to one side. Kate saw it open and thought she heard Magnus and Will. Ralphie liked Magnus and Will, but she didn’t want to speak to either so clearly it was time to make herself scarce.

“Time to go buddy,” Kate said, reattaching the lead and dragging him towards the other door. Ralphie gave her mournful eyes but she really wanted to be elsewhere. “I’ll make it up to you,” she promised, tugging his collar. “Come on.”

The steno went with her, albeit a little reluctantly at first. Then there was some new smell in the bushes and he veered off in that direction. Rolling her eyes she let him sniff at what turned out to be some kind of hopping insect. A quick look over her shoulder assured that she was still alone for now, so she figured she could let Ralphie sniff around for a bit.

A dark car pulled up into the driveway. Blondie and Wolfboy climbed out. That was a little surprising. She’d honestly not expected to see them again for some time. They were smiling as they reached for their takeout. She held a bag out of his reach and he playfully trapped her against the car, taking the bag from her and setting it on the roof. Ashley smiled up at him, softly radiant. Henry leaned down, forehead touching hers. He wore a goofy grin as he wrapped his arms around her waist. Ashley rested a hand on his chest.

Kate grabbed Ralphie’s collar and pulled him bodily away from the little bug. It was harder to do now that he had almost a hundred pounds on her, but she managed. Maybe she needed to lay off on feeding him burgers for awhile. He plodded back inside and she closed the door behind him, feeling a little weird.

That hadn’t been what she’d expected. Blondie and Wolfboy were stupidly cute and they looked genuinely interested. Kate had been betting it would be one and done, or maybe they’d start some friends with benefits thing.

Kate put Ralphie away for the night after giving him a good scratch behind the ears and set off in search of her jacket. The security door had apparently been fixed in place with several sturdy braces. Kate didn’t want to take any chances though and just eyed inside, looking for her jacket and iPod. Of course, they weren’t there. Maybe she had brought them back to her room, she thought.

A search of her room turned up absolutely nothing. She set her hands on her hips and looked around, wondering where it could have gone. At least the search had kept her mind off of what had happened earlier in the day. She’d forgotten how good it had felt to kiss and be kissed.

Kate pinched the bridge of her nose. This was getting ridiculous! Just how long was the effect from the demonic furbies supposed to last anyway? Refocusing on finding her iPod, Kate continued her search. The battery was completely dead and she wanted to recharge it before Magnus sent them on some new snipe hunt.

She stopped in the hall and realized with a sinking feeling that Will probably had her jacket and iPod. This day was made of fail. It was official. Kate figured she had two choices; suffer through someone else’s music without her favorite jacket the next time they went out, or go get her stuff back from Zimmerman. Maybe she could sneak in and grab her stuff back. Squaring her shoulders, Kate marched down the hall towards Will’s room. Wearing her most neutral face, she rapped on the door. No answer. She tried again and still no reply. She tried the handle and found it unlocked.

She looked around the cracked door and didn’t see Will, which was good but slightly disappointing. Kate slapped the light on with a scowl. No jacket. No Ipod. Epic. Fail. Kate slapped the light off and went looking.

The sound of loud explosions in the media room was promising. Maybe he was playing Halo. Kate stalked into the room, coming up short when she saw it was just Ashley and Henry playing co-op over their takeout. Yet again, none of the weirdness she’d expected. The sappy sweetness wasn’t obvious there either; they were playing the game instead of making out or something. The only visible difference between yesterday and today seemed to be the seating arrangements. Instead of sitting at opposite ends of the couch they were sharing the middle.

Wasn’t there supposed to be awkward?

“Oh. Hey, Kate.” Ashley paused their game, a light blush on her cheeks. Henry was sinking in his seat, and was soon hidden behind the huge throw pillows.

Kate blinked. “Hey.”

Ah. Here was the awkward.

“So, ah,” Kate couldn’t remember for a moment why she’d come.

“Will was looking for you just now.”

Kate’s brain snapped into focus again. “He was?” She hoped that hadn’t sounded as squeaky as she thought it had. “I think he has my iPod,” she added. “Yeah. I was looking for him. And my jacket.”

“You could spawn camp his room?” Henry added from his hidden spot.

“Nerd,” Kate shot back on reflex. She shrugged a shoulder at Ashley. “I’ll try that. Thanks.” She beat a hasty tactical retreat.

The light was on in Will’s room when she rounded the corner. Well at least that was going for her. There was music on in his room too. Good Music. Her music. Kate paused for a moment. He was willingly listening to her stuff? Somehow she’d stepped into the twilight zone, she was sure. She put on a neutral face once more, squared her shoulders and knocked.

“Just a sec!”

The door opened and she caught a brief smile before he schooled his features into something more neutral. Damn her if her heart hadn’t just lurched a bit. Fucking. Nubbins.

“Hey, uh, do you have my iPod?” she asked.

“Yeah,” he said, pushing the door open in invitation. “I stuck it into my dock to charge and decided to listen to more of that album. Hope you don’t mind?” He lifted an eyebrow and gave her a half-smile.

Kate shrugged, trying not to react, but damn...Right. not reacting. “Hey, anything that helps you get off the Coldplay.”

Will rolled his eyes at her but he smiled too. “You aren’t ever going to let that go, are you?”

“Probably not.” Kate smirked as she sashayed into the room, giving it a once over. She wasn’t casing it, she’d already done that anyway, but she was a bit curious. “At least not until you learn about real music.”

Will chuckled and spread his hands. “I place myself in the hands of the master then.”

“Really?” she drew the word out, unable to stop the leer. He blushed just a bit, but grinned all the same.

“I’m serious. I’m not saying I’ll ever like experimental acid grunge, but this is pretty good.” He jerked a thumb at the docked iPod.

“I can work with that.” Kate leaned against his dresser. “So, uh, do you have my jacket too?”

“Oh, yeah.” He went over to his closet and pulled it off a hanger. “Here.”

“You hung my jacket up?” she asked, amused.

Will rolled his eyes again and silently held it out.

“Thanks.”

“Sure.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “So, uhm.”

He was going to want to talk. No. No talking. Talking was very bad. She didn’t want to talk. Kate tried to find something to direct the conversation into. Something safe.

“So I saw Ashley and Henry. They said you had my Ipod. Thanks for picking it up for me.”

“Yeah, no problem.”

Kate didn’t look at him. She got the impression he wasn’t looking at her either though.

“I asked if they’d seen you and they hadn’t. It was short, awkward conversation.”

Kate winced. “Yeah, tell me about it.” She paused, looking for something else to say that might keep him from wanting to talk about...the room. “They seem to be okay though.”

“Yeah. As...awkward as it was for us, Magnus seems to think it was probably healthier for Ashley to uh, disperse all that energy, so that’s something I guess.”

“Oh, do not tell me she has vampire Pon Farr,” Kate snorted.

Will laughed and slouched against the bed. “Nothing like that thankfully. But it was stressing her system more than Magnus would like. Actually it’s a bit like-”

Will babbled on about what was no doubt fascinating medical information. She knew he couldn’t actually share everything, he was too ethical for that, but he could share an enormous amount of boring information anyway. Kate really didn’t care one way or the other about her coworkers abnormalities as long as she wasn’t being crushed, stabbed or snacked on; for the most part it worked well.

Kate let Will babble, because he really liked to talk about the details and he became very animated when he talked about something he liked. Plus it meant they weren’t discussing their little make out session. She wondered if it would have gotten as far as Ash and Hank if they hadn’t been rescued. What would she be doing right now instead of watching the way Will’s hands emphasized this or that point?

Kate hadn’t met Ashley before the Cabal had taken her, and only knew her as she was now. Since she’d reappeared, battered, bloody and nearly broken, she’d been edgy, wary, even when she was chilling on the couch. Kate had recognized that watchfulness, thought she understood. It was probably another reason why they ended up getting along so well. That and Kate was likely the only person who didn’t look at her differently now. But today was confusing. No one was acting they way she thought they should, and one thing Kate did well was predict what people would do.

She watched Will lift one hand to gesture vaguely at some point and focused on his hands; still nerdy, scholarly, she supposed, but there were gun calluses and a couple little nicks and scars from working here. He crossed his arms over his chest and Kate looked up, focusing next on his oh-so-kissable lips.

“You haven’t heard a word I’ve said,” Will stated, not really angry if the small smirk was any indication.

“No,” Kate said simply, studying his eyes. They were rather nice and they hardly missed anything which was kinda exciting. Maybe it was a bad idea...

Will stuffed his hands into his pockets. His expression grew less teasing and more soft. “You wanna talk about it?”

“Not really,” she said, smiling. It might be a bad idea but she was gonna do it anyway.

“Well-”

She kissed him.

There was a long, terrifying moment where he froze completely. Kate’s heart beat rapidly and she began to berate herself for thinking she could do that. She needed to escape and she quickly scrambled to think of the best way out of there and into the sanctuary of her room. Maybe she could blame it on the nubbins! Yes! This was all their fault.

As Kate was leaning back, Will’s arms wrapped around her waist. His lips followed hers, kissing her back. She froze for a moment, surprised, then leaned into him, pulling him closer by his belt loops. He’d changed clothing and still had that shower-fresh smell, but he hadn’t shaved. Will’s stubble rubbed against her lips as she kissed up his jaw and nipped at his ear. Will kissed her neck and Kate tilted her head further to the side to let him continue. The light scruff was damn sexy. He kissed under her ear and she shivered.

Those same talented fingers from earlier found the hem of her shirt and slipped under. One hand spread over her side then up her back. Kate found his lips again and wound her fingers into his shirt, pulling him closer. Will’s hand slipped downward, playfully grabbing her ass through her jeans. Kate laughed and kissed away the little smirk he wore. On another guy she might have slapped and walked out on, but Z-Man was playful about it rather than possessive. He stepped forward and she stepped back, her legs brushing against his desk.

Will broke the kiss, grinned as he wagged his eyebrows at her, then lifted her up onto the desk. Kate laughed in surprise and wondered how adventurous he was, the quiet ones always were. He went in for her lips again, tongue warring with hers. Kate slid her hands under his shirt and began tugging it upwards. He leaned back enough to allow her to rip it off over his head. She thought about it for half a second then flung it casually to one side and smirked. Tossing his clothing all over the room was more satisfying than she through it would be. Will chuckledand reached for her again, both hands sliding under her shirt and cupping her breasts over her bra. Will’s stubble grazed against her skin as he went for her neck once more, finding that one spot again. Kate sighed.

There were definitely perks to making out with a guy who noticed everything. She’d dated some guys who talked the talk but who were all fumbling fingers when they got to the bedroom; in that way Will was a total opposite. It was kinda ni- Kate’s brain stopped as Will’s hands slipped under the fabric of her bra and caressed her skin, palms gently hefting her breasts, nimble fingers ghosting and teasing.

Her brain finally rebooted and she nipped at his scruffy jawline then gently pushed him back, sliding off the desk after him. The desk was fine but it was a little limiting...it had kinky possibility, but she wasn’t in the mood for that at the moment - not when there was a large and comfy bed just feet away. Stalking forward she watched his eyes go wide as he backed up and abruptly sat as his knees hit the bed. Kate grinned and pushed him onto his back. Seemed Z-Man’s hyper-focused attention had some drawbacks. The thought amused and excited her; he was completely hers at the moment to do with as she pleased. Kate ran her fingers down his chest, admiring the smooth planes.What did she want to do? Choices, choices. Will continued to smile up at her, eyes alight with bright enthusiasm and more than a hint of naughty promise. Always the quiet ones. She attacked his belt.

Will looked a little surprised to find he’d lost his pants so quickly, but he wasn’t complaining either. She laughed as she tossed the jeans away in a different direction than the shirt had gone. His room was too damn neat, anyway. Will rose up on his elbows with a grin. Kate stripped off her shirt and dropped it by her feet. His attention was entirely on her chest. The black bra always had that effect. Maybe it was the little pink bow at the center. She kicked off her shoes and shimmied out of the pants.

Kate prowled onto the bed and Will backed up further onto it. Straddling his thighs, she smirked down at him then ran her hands up his chest. She liked the feeling of his warm skin under her hands so she ran them back down then up again. She lightly scratched her nails just to see his reaction and he shivered a little but grabbed her hands. She pouted at him, expecting him to let her go but he tugged her forward for a kiss instead.

Will kissed like he did everything else. He was a meticulous explorer, earnest in his interest and above all, enthusiastic. But what was exploration without a few surprises? Feeling mischievous, Kate slipped one of her hands out of his then reached down and snapped the elastic of his boxers. Will jumped under her with a little sound that wasn’t quite a yelp of pain. Her smile grew when she caught his eyes rolling back for a moment. Possibilities were there for fun and teasing both.

She tucked her hair back behind one ear then leaned down to kiss him. Will’s hands traced along the edge of her bra and met at the clasp and undid it easily. He didn’t bother trying to be macho or somehow impressive by doing it with only one hand. Kate approved of being direct, not looking like an idiot, and knowing his way around something as dirt simple as a bra clasp.

Kate sat back in his lap and Will’s hands went down to her hips, thumbs gently massaging. She slowly slid the strap off one arm then the other. She noticed the distracted circling of his fingers increased in pressure, so she went slower.

“Tease,” he accused.

Kate batted her eyelashes at him, but she didn’t try hard for the innocent look. The smirk would probably ruin it anyway. She finally pulled it off her arms and casually flung it over a shoulder, generally aiming for one of his lamps but not particularly caring if she missed. Kate was too busy enjoying the transfixed look. A herd of stenos ridden by pixies could have stampeded through his bedroom and he wouldn’t have noticed.

Kate ran the tip of her tongue over her lips, wondering if that’d get his attention. It did and she fought the urge to giggle. “You can touch them if you want.” She turned on some of the sultry, just to see what he did; Will’s reactions were oddly fascinating.

“Oh, I want,” he assured her.

She would have laughed at the rejoinder except the timbre of his voice hit her low, sending a frisson of anticipation up her spine. Will ran his hands up and palmed her breasts, massaging very lightly. He traced over her breasts with his fingers, drawing random patterns with featherlight touches, ever the explorer. It was a new experience for her and Kate took all of about two seconds to decide she really, really liked it. An index finger lightly circled one erect peak and Kate couldn’t quite stop the small gasp that escaped.

Will sat up abruptly, arms sliding around her back to keep her from falling out of his lap. He leaned up and kissed her hard, drawing back only when they were both breathless. Will kissed a heated trail down her neck and back to her breasts. He gently sucked on one taut nipple then ever so lightly blew on it. She shivered as he began to follow the meandering patterns his fingers had traced with his lips and tongue. Admittedly she didn’t have much there compared to some women, but he seemed determined to discover every inch of skin. The lips that had been such a distraction earlier were just as wonderful as she’d imagined, but the slight scruff added a delicious twist. He kissed his way back up her neck and she tilted her head to one side, letting him have better access. He was warm and hard through the thin cotton of his boxers.

Feeling control slipping away, Kate fought to regain it. This was fun but she wanted more, and perhaps Z-Man was getting a bit too comfy with how things were going. She wanted more, her way, and she wanted now.

Kate leaned down as she drew his face up with a finger on his chin. She kissed him fiercely then pushed him back to the bed with a grin. Sliding against him so she had as must contact as possible she chuckled as he tried to grab her and pull her back into his lap. He was comically easy to avoid but she let his fingers tangle with his just for the sport of it. Finally she slipped off the bed, cooing at his look of utter disappointment.

Will scowled at her for a second then crooked a finger with a wicked look. Kate laughed and sashayed her way over to the ipod and bent at the waist, giving him a good look at her rear. Her rear was rather nice and she was confidant she’d caught him checking it out on more than one occasion. Let him look.

“You’re seriously going to mess with your music?”

Kate shifted her weight from one side to the other, generally in time with the song currently playing. “You were the one who said he was in the hands of the master,” she retorted, winking over her shoulder.

He huffed. There was no other way to really describe it. The slightly indignant look coupled with the nicely tented boxers sent her into a gale of laughter. Will rolled his eyes and made a little courtly gesture that managed to be both elegant and mocking. “Okay then.”

Snickering to herself Kate found her Bristol sound trip-hop and downtempo albums. Selecting some of the more...bedroom worthy tracks from Massive Attack she made a quick playlist. Hearing him shift restlessly on the bed she tossed in some Lamb and Portishead just to take up another minute or so.

“Kate...”

“Hang on,” she chastised, moving the track Angel to the top. “Just pushing something you might have heard to the top of the list.”

She replaced the iPod in the docking station and turned around, leaning against the dresser. The deep beat of the song unspooled. It was dark and a little predatory. For a moment she was a little disappointed she wasn’t wearing more and his room wasn’t a little bigger. Damn, but she was sure she could put on a hell of a show to this song. Maybe some other time.

She stalked forward to the heartbeat of the track, stopping just out of arms reach. Kate reach slid a hand into her panties then a second. She slowly pushed them down and drew them off her legs. The were fairly wet by this point, she noticed. Kate held them up then daintily dropped them to the floor.

By this point Will had moved to the edge of the bed. She stepped in close and leaned up to kiss him. He returned the kiss with passion, wrapping his arms around her back and pulling her closer. Kate broke the kiss, their lips making a small pop, and grasped the waistband of his boxers. She grinned up at him and pulled at them. She saw the moment of comprehension and let the elastic snap back. It wasn’t much of a snap but she figured everything felt a little bit more intense right now. His entire body shuddered against her. Interesting.

“Trouble,” he managed to say, grabbing her hands again.

Kate shrugged a shoulder. Trouble. Fun. Whatever. She freed a hand and slid it behind the band, wondering what she’d find. What was under Will Zimmerman’s boxers? Her questing hand grasped him playfully. He was cut and seemed like a fun size. Trimmed the hair down there too. She would have been surprised if he’d shaved, but trimmed seemed to go with the rest of his wardrobe. Will moaned, his forehead falling against hers as she gently squeezed and stroked upwards.

Kate kissed up his jaw then nibbled at his ear. “Do you like the music?” she asked, pitching her voice low.

“Huh-wha?” he grunted.

Kate smiled and licked his earlobe. “Do. You. Like. The. Music?” she asked again, pausing between each word before leaning back to see his reaction. She took pity on him and didn’t move her hand. Much.

“Yeah,” he breathed. He held her chin with his forefinger and thumb, pulling her into a kiss. He nuzzled her then rested his forehead against hers. “Yeah, I really do.” His eyes were locked on hers, impossibly deep.

Deep, like maybe he was meaning. Kate’s heart sped up and she had the sudden conflicting urge to either flee or just do him so hard he couldn’t see straight. And then flee. She didn’t like it when he set her off balance. Damn the man and his pretty eyes. It was mildly irksome. Except getting it back was fun.

She snaked her hand down further, fondling his balls. “There’s more where that came from,” she promised, keeping it light. Not much of a retort but, eh? She didn’t need much in the way of words at the moment. And like that he was putty in her hands and she was in control of everything once more. Easier than stealing Hank’s credit cards. “Relax,” she advised, “you’re in the hands of a master.” Punny? Yes? Desired effect achieved? Also yes. She’d take it. Plus the noise he was making was kinda cute with the scruff and the hair.

She grabbed the waistband of his boxers in both hands and gently slid them over his erection and down his thighs. He bobbed slightly in the air. Dicks were such odd looking things. Fun, but odd looking. She tossed his boxers over his shoulder, aiming for the top corner of his wardobe.

“Nice!” she exclaimed when she made the shot and they hung off the furniture.

“Huh?” Will turned to look. “Kate.”

She could hear him rolling his eyes, so of course now was the perfect time to reach down and grab hold of his attention. She wrapped the other arm around his chest and nibbled at his jaw. “Hmm?” She stroked upward. Kate hadn’t done this in awhile, but she wasn’t hearing any complaining. “You were saying?”

“God, Kate,”

“Offerings can be left at my door,” Kate purred in his ear and she rubbed her thumb over the top.

Will’s laugh turned into a moan as she added an extra twist. Seemed like it had been awhile for him, too. He grabbed her wrist, making her stop and blinked a few times before he could focus on her. “Second drawer on the bedside table.”

Kate let him go and crawled across the bed to open the drawer indicated, finding a box of condoms and a bottle of lube; not that she needed any of that at the moment. Kate dug around a bit to see what other naughty things he might have in that drawer. She wasn’t surprised she didn’t find anything though. Maybe a teeny bit disappointed. The bed dipped behind her as Will sat on it too. Kate ripped off a foil packet slid behind him, rubbing her breasts against his back, and handed him the condom over his shoulder. “Trojan man, huh?”

His response to that was to turn around an kiss her hard then waggle his eyebrows at her. She nipped at his jaw in retaliation then kissed her way up to his ear. He turned his head to capture her lips again but she darted out of the way, ducking out of easy reach. He returned his attention to the condom and she amused herself by just barely tracing her fingers over his arms then down his side and hips. The talented fingers paused again. Kate slid her hands up his back then nuzzled his ear. “Need a little help down there?” she asked. She lightly grazed his chest with her nails.

He coughed a laugh. “Well, if someone would stop being a tease,” he retorted, sounding a bit unsteady.

Kate nipped lightly at his ear and drew her hands down to his hips again. “Hmm,” she purred. “Well if you don’t, in about three seconds I’m going to have to take care of myself,” she paused to just barely lick his ear, “and you won’t get to play at all,” she pouted.

He ripped the foil open and rolled the condom on in about two and a half seconds. Kate laughed as he twisted around and tackled her to the bed. Rough stubble grazed her lips as they kissed messily. She gasped when his fingers slid between her thighs, teasing. Damn it’d been awhile. Enough playtime.

Kate tumbled him to the bed so she was the one on top. She leaned down and kissed him until they were breathless. Kate smirked down at him and shifted her hips, teasing. He was trapped between them and Will moaned as she slid up and down along his shaft. One hand went to her breast, the other slid over her thigh. He seemed to be catching the same urgent feeling. Maybe it’d been forever for him too.

She put one hand on his shoulder and held him with her other. Sinking down, Kate let her head drop back with a moan. Way, way too long. Will let out a moan as she shifted above him, tilting her hips. She began with small movements, taking the time to adjust. His hands slid down to her waist then over her hips and thighs. His fingers paused on the most recent scar. His expression began to turn serious so Kate leaned down and kissed him fiercely. Stubble rasped over her lips once more in sharp contrast to the smooth slide of his scholarly fingers as they drew random patterns over her skin.

Kate gripped both of his shoulders and began to move her hips in earnest, trying to find a rhythm that would ease the tight, needy feeling between her thighs. Will leaned up, capturing one breast in his lips and suckling lightly. Kate wound the fingers of one hand into his hair, encouraging as she continued to move her hips.

Will’s fingers found their way to her clit and began rubbing in counterpoint to the upward thrust of his hips. She made a small noise as his fingers hit her just right. He kissed his way up to her neck and he found that spot behind her ear. Kate shuddered over him and let her head drop to one of his shoulders. One hand gripped his bicep the other still tangled in his hair. Will kissed her neck and nibbled on her ear before unerringly returning to that same little spot behind it.

Kate sped up, wanting more, needing release. Today had been torture and it’d been so long since she’d been in bed with a guy and damn but the boy learned fast. She moaned when he increased the speed of his fingers and panted into his neck. Climax came suddenly, a wave of ecstasy that radiated from her groin and shot outwards. She cried out, muffled by his shoulder, gripping his arms tightly, her toes curling. She gasped for air, vision a bit blurry as the orgasm rolled through her.

Will rolled them over, sliding out for an empty moment before he joined her again. He kissed her soundly, snaking one arm under her shoulders, the other between them. His fingers swirled over her clit in the same rhythm that had sent her over before. His hips crashed into hers. Kate wrapped both arms and one leg around him. She gasped as he stopped teasing and pushed her leg over his arm, changing the angle. Kate came again, back arching, fingers digging into his shoulders. The steady rhythm of Will’s hips faltered and he came with a heavy male grunt that could have been her name.

Kate closed her eyes and caught her breath. Will was breathing heavily in her ear and was a bit heavy but she wasn’t uncomfortable at the moment. Will kissed behind her ear and slid out which made her shudder. She had the distant feeling she should be doing something, but damn his bed was nice and she didn’t want to move just yet. The bed dipped as Will got up and dealt with the condom.

She sighed and stretched languidly. Damn but it was good to get that out of her system. She let out a little humming sound and opened her eyes, looking around for her clothing. Time to go.

He crawled back into bed and pressed a kiss to her temple. No, she was leaving now.

“Wow.”

She could stay a few more seconds. Kate arched an eyebrow. “Wow, huh?” She turned to look back at him, feeling a teeny bit smug. Maybe.

He kissed her again, pulling her close, which she wasn’t sure she liked. “Mmhmm.” He nuzzled her neck, which she liked much more.

“Yeah, well,”

“You’re pretty amazing, you know that?” he said, interrupting her.

“Yeah, thanks,” she pushed away slightly and he let her go. Kate sat up and looked to see where her clothing had gone. The panties were close by but maybe she’d head back to her room commando. She picked up the panties and looked around for her bra.

“You made a mess of my room,” he told her, not really complaining.

She couldn’t help the smile nor the laugh. “Heh.” She went for her bra which was hanging off the back of his desk chair. She heard a rustle of fabric and then the slide of his drawers again. Her shirt had gone across the room. She turned to look for it and found Will blocking her way.

“You could stay,” he offered quietly. Will rubbed the back of his head, and yeah, Kate stared at his bare chest. His hair was tousled and the shirt hung from one hand. “Look, Kate.”

Oh shit. He wanted to talk.

“I don’t usually do this sort of thing, so I’m not real sure what to say next.” He smiled hesitantly. “I really like you.”

Kate froze. Part of her wanted to leave right now, to just escape out the door and never look back. Things would be fine tomorrow. But...Something in his tone of voice prevented her from bolting. “I should go,” she said. She didn’t sound too convinced though, even to her own ears.

“You don’t have to though. Look, I don’t think either of us was looking to start something, and I don’t even know what- I mean I don’t expect- What I’m saying- I’d really like you to stay tonight and I’d like to stop rambling and sounding like an idiot.” He let out a long breath, and the hand that had been scratching through his hair hung limp by his side.

Okay, so the rambling was a little cute. She met his eyes. The look he was giving her made her insides twist and she wasn’t sure she liked it. “I-”

“Just,” he interrupted her, “if I have zero chance with you... just, tell me it was the nubbins and,” he made a small little gesture that could have meant any number of things, “and nothing else then that’s, then that’s it and we see one another tomorrow and we’ll be cool? But... I’d like you to stay. See what happens.”

Kate focused on a spot on his shoulder. His eyes weren’t good to look at. They made her stomach flutter and it had been the nubbins, right? Well...Yeah, he was giving her an out. Kate knew, deep down, it hadn’t been all about the nubbins. Sure, they’d made her think along those lines but...she’d been in control. The choice to go for it had been hers, the idea all her own. He was giving her the chance to back on that now, and that was...It made her feel a little fuzzy, a little uneasy.

Kate looked up. He was patiently waiting. He looked uneasy which was unusual since Will was one of the more together people in this mad house. He was being honest and more, he was setting up an opportunity for her to be, well, dishonest.

Because he liked her and damn if that wasn’t....she didn’t know what it was.

Kate opened her mouth, fully intending to say it was just the nubbins, but the words just didn’t come. The urge to flee had faded a little. Kate dropped the clothing she was holding before she really had time to think. She snagged the shirt out of his unresisting hand and pulled it on over her head. It was big and damn if she didn’t look fine with the hem falling just to her thighs. Will swallowed as she passed by and headed for the drawer she’d seen him grab the boxers from. She selected a dark navy and hunter green plaid pair and put them on.

“I’m borrowing these,” she said, not quite looking at him as she slid back into bed. It was still warm. Will crawled in beside her, wrapping his arms around her. Kate frowned. “I don’t cuddle.”

Will smiled and leaned in, kissing her until she felt a little light headed. He pulled her closer as she stared at the ceiling, brain not quite working.

“I-”

He nuzzled that spot behind her ear and gently squeezed before relaxing beside her, yet somehow managing to keep her rather tangled.

Kate frowned then sighed. The bed was comfy - so was the boy for that matter. She’d endure for tonight. Tomorrow? Well, she’d see how things went.


End file.
